Phillip Crawley, left, publisher and CEO of The Globe and Mail, alongside The Globe's chairman David Thomson, centre, and incoming president and CEO Andrew Saunders.Melissa Tait/The Globe and Mail
Andrew Saunders has been appointed as the president and chief executive officer of The Globe and Mail, effective Sept. 1.
The Globe and Mail announced Thursday that Mr. Saunders, currently The Globe’s chief revenue officer (CRO), will succeed Phillip Crawley as CEO upon Mr. Crawley’s retirement on Aug. 31.
Mr. Saunders is a highly qualified leader who has held a number of executive positions with The Globe since joining in 2002 as director of advertising. In his current role of CRO, he is responsible for leading the monetization strategy for all Globe products and platforms including the newspaper, magazines, custom publishing, digital platforms, the Alliance programmatic advertising network, events and the conference centre.
He also oversees the successful integration of various commercial functions – subscriptions, advertising, pricing/revenue management, customer acquisition and retention, customer care, marketing, UX, and data analytics. Prior to joining The Globe, Mr. Saunders served in vice-president roles at Bell Media, ROBTv and CTV Network.
The announcement was shared with employees Thursday by David Thomson, chairman of The Globe and Mail, who stated: “Andrew’s leadership has been instrumental in driving The Globe’s successful transformation from a print-centric organization to a digitally driven model, emphasizing the growing importance of subscriptions whilst extolling the value of advertising. His exceptional grasp of the commercial side of the media industry continues to play a crucial role in driving this transition.”
Mr. Thomson also expressed his gratitude toward Mr. Crawley for his unwavering 25-year commitment to The Globe. Mr. Thomson observed, “Phillip steered The Globe through intense newspaper competition and successfully established it as a leading force in new media and online products, whilst upholding exceptional standards for editorial and production quality.”
Mr. Crawley commented on the announcement by saying, “Andrew is a natural leader who lives and breathes the values of The Globe and Mail. He believes in fostering a collaborative culture among staff members, recognizing that a highly engaged team is essential to the success of any organization. He builds relationships with people from all departments, always with an eye towards The Globe’s long-term growth and success.”
Mr. Saunders will work closely with Mr. Crawley prior to officially taking over the role on Sept. 1. “I am thrilled to lead The Globe in the years ahead,” Mr. Saunders said. “We have a tremendous opportunity to build on the company’s already strong foundation in the Canadian media industry, and to drive growth and innovation. Our team is continually exploring new technologies and platforms that will allow us to reach a broader audience and deliver our top-class content in new ways.”